Method and apparatus for line selection in a communication

ABSTRACT

The present invention includes embodiments of an apparatus and method for selecting a line from two or more lines on a communication device. The communication device comprises a display module, an input module, a line selection module, and a communication module for making a call over a network to a target recipient. The method comprises the steps of storing line selection information; monitoring the input module for initiation of a call to the target recipient; upon detecting the initiation of the call, selecting a line from the at least two lines in the line selection module, the selected line is dependent on said line selection information; and making the call to the target recipient on the selected line.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/235,509, filed Sep. 27, 2005, the contents of which arehereby incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to communications devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Communications devices with the ability to consolidate multiplefunctions into a single device are becoming increasingly popular. Forexample, such a communications device may be used as a telephone and foremail. In addition, it is common for an individual to use such acommunications device for many aspects of their lives such as work andpersonal use.

A user may wish to use a different phone line when making calls todifferent parties. For example, when calling a work colleague, a usermay wish to use a line dedicated for work use so that, when the workcolleague receives the call on their communications device, the user'swork phone number is identified. Likewise, when calling a friend, theuser may wish to use a line for personal use so that, when the friendreceives the call on their communications device, the user's personalphone number is identified. The use of multiple lines may also be usefulfor tracking long distance bills and other billing matters.

Systems for selecting alternate lines exist and are commonly known as“Alternate Line Service” (ALS). In one known system, when a user wishesto make a call on an alternate line, they must open a menu and manuallyselect the alternate line. Due to the added operating steps and time itwould take to configure the call, it is not convenient to use analternate line. In addition, the user may accidentally make a call onthe wrong line by forgetting to select an alternate line or by selectingthe wrong line.

Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for new and improvedmechanisms for selecting a line in a communication device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompany drawings, which show by wayof example, embodiments of the present invention, and in which:

FIG. 1 shows in block diagram form a mobile communications deviceincorporating a line selection mechanism in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows, in diagrammatic form, a front view of an exemplaryimplementation of the mobile communications device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows in block diagram form further aspects of the mobilecommunications device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4A shows in diagrammatic form an example of a graphical userinterface screen for an address book for the device;

FIG. 4B shows in diagrammatic form an address book entry for thegraphical user interface screen;

FIG. 4C shows a further view of the address book entry on the graphicaluser interface screen;

FIG. 4D shows a further view of the address book entry for the graphicaluser interface screen;

FIG. 5A shows a screen display for a missed call indicator;

FIG. 5B shows a screen display for a menu associated with the missedcall indicator of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5C shows a screen display for another form of the missed callindicator;

FIG. 6A shows a screen display for a call log;

FIG. 6B shows a screen display with a menu associated with the call log;

FIG. 7A shows a screen display on the graphical user interface for a newvoice mail indicator;

FIG. 7B shows a screen display for a menu associated with a new voicemail indicator of FIG. 7A;

FIG. 8A shows a diagrammatic view of an electronic mail messagegraphical user interface screen;

FIG. 8B shows a diagrammatic view of a menu associated with anelectronic mail message;

FIG. 9A shows a diagrammatic view of line selection setup graphical userinterface screen; and

FIG. 9B shows a diagrammatic view of a phone module graphical userinterface screen.

In the drawings, like elements are indicated by like references.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

One embodiment of the present invention comprises a method for selectinga line from at least two lines on a device having a display, an inputmodule, a line selection module, a communication module for making acall over a network to a target recipient, the method comprises thesteps of: storing line selection information; monitoring the inputmodule for initiation of a call to the target recipient; upon detectingthe initiation of the call, selecting a line from the at least two linesin the line selection module, the selected line being dependent on theline selection information; and making the call to the target recipienton the selected line.

Another embodiment of the present invention comprises a device forcommunicating over a network, the device comprises: an input module, theinput module is responsive to initiation of a call; a communicationmodule for communicating with a target recipient over the network on oneof at least two lines; a storage module for storing line information;and a line selection module for selecting one of the at least two linesfor communicating with the target recipient, the line selection modulebeing responsive to the line information.

A further embodiment of the present invention comprises a computerprogram product having a computer-readable medium tangibly embodyingcomputer executable code for selecting a line on a device having atleast two lines and including a line selection module, a display, aninput module, a communication module for making a call to a targetrecipient over a network, the executable code comprises: instructionsfor storing line selection information; instructions for monitoring forthe input module for initiation of a call to the target recipient;instructions for, upon detecting initiation of the, retrieving from theline selection module a line selected from the at least two lines independence upon said line selection information; and instructions formaking the call to the target recipient on the selected line.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing anexample of an electronic communications device 10 suitable for use witha line selection mechanism in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention. The communication device 10 as shown comprises atwo-way mobile communication device having voice and messagingcommunications capabilities. The electronic communication device 10 maytake various forms or implementations such as a data communicationdevice, a multiple-mode communication device configured for both dataand voice communication, a mobile telephone, a PDA enabled for wirelesscommunication, a computer system with a wireless modem or wirelessnetwork card, or a computer or phone device with a fixed connection to anetwork. The device 10 may also be implemented as a handheld or portabledevice.

As shown in FIG. 1, the communication device 10 includes a communicationsubsystem 11. The communication subsystem 11 may include a receiver (notshown), a transmitter (not shown), and associated components such as anantenna element (not shown), and a controller such as a digital signalprocessor (DSP). As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, theparticular design of the communication subsystem 11 will depend on thecommunication network(s) in which the device 10 is intended to operate.

Signals received by the communication device 10 from a wirelesscommunication network 50 are input to the receiver (not shown) of thecommunication subsystem 11, which may perform such common receiverfunctions as signal amplification, frequency-down conversion, filtering,channel selection and the like. In a similar manner, signals to betransmitted are processed by the DSP, for example, modulation andencoding and input to the transmitter for digital-to-analog conversion,frequency-up conversion, filtering, amplification and transmission overthe wireless communication network 50.

The communication device 10 includes a microprocessor or microcontrollerdevice 38. The microprocessor operates under stored program control(e.g. firmware) and is suitably programmed to control the overalloperation of the communication device 10 and other functions asdescribed below. The microprocessor 38 interacts with the communicationssubsystem 11 and also interacts with further device subsystems such as adisplay module 22, a flash memory 24, a random access memory (RAM) 26,one or more auxiliary input/output (I/O) subsystems or devices 28 (e.g.a thumbwheel 28 a as shown in FIG. 2), a serial port 30, an input devicee.g. a keyboard or keypad 32, a speaker 34, a microphone 36, ashort-range communications subsystem 40, and other device subsystems ormodules which are generally designated by reference 42.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the microprocessor 38, in addition to itsoperating system functions, preferably enables execution of the softwareapplications 58 on the device. The software applications 58 controlbasic device operations, including data and voice communicationapplications for example, and are normally installed (e.g. “burned”) inthe device 10 as firmware during manufacture. Further softwareapplications may also be loaded onto the device 10 through the wirelesscommunication network 50, an auxiliary I/O subsystem or module 28,serial port 30, short-range communications subsystem 40 or any othersuitable subsystem 42, and installed by a user (or automatically) in theRAM 26 or a non-volatile memory device for execution by themicroprocessor 38. Such flexibility in application installationincreases the functionality of the device 10 and may provide enhancedon-device functions, communication-related functions, or both. Forexample, secure communication applications may enable electroniccommerce functions and other such financial transactions to be performedusing the device 10.

In data communication mode, a received signal such as a text message orweb page download is processed by the communication subsystem 11 andinput to the microprocessor 38, which may further process the receivedsignal for output to the display 22 through a graphics module, forexample in the subsystem 42, or alternatively to an auxiliary I/O device28. A user of the communication device 10 may also compose data itemswithin a software application 58, such as email messages and phonenumbers for example, using the keyboard 32 in conjunction with thedisplay 22 and for the auxiliary I/O device 28 (e.g. the thumbwheel 28a). Such composed items are then transmitted and received over acommunication network (e.g. the wireless network 50) through thecommunication subsystem 11.

The serial port 30 (which may be for example a universal serial bus(USB) port) in FIG. 1 allows a user to set preferences through anexternal device or software application. This extends the capabilitiesof the device 10 by providing for information or software downloads tothe device 10 other than through the wireless communication network 50.

The short-range communication subsystem 40 provides for communicationbetween the device 10 and different systems or devices, which need notnecessarily be similar devices. For example, the short-rangecommunication subsystem 40 may comprise an infrared device andassociated circuits and components, or a Bluetooth™ communicationmodule, to provide for communication with similarly enabled systems anddevices.

The wireless communication network 50 may comprise a wireless wide areapacket data network, (e.g. Mobitex™ or DataTAC™), which provides radiocoverage to mobile implementations of the device 10. The wirelesscommunication network 50 may comprise a voice and data network such asGSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) and GPRS (General PacketRadio System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), or various otherthird generation networks such as EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSMEvolution) or UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Systems). Inanother implementation or embodiment, the wireless communication network50 comprises a wireless local area network (WLAN), such as a networkaccording to one of the IEEE 802.11 family of standards. In anotherimplementation or embodiment, the communication device 10 is configuredto communicate in both data and voice modes over both wireless WAN andWLAN networks and to roam between such networks.

Reference is next made to FIG. 2 which shows, in diagrammatic form, afront view of the communication device 10 implemented as a handheld unitand indicated generally by reference 20. The handheld device 20 includesa display screen or display module 44, an alphanumeric keyboard orkeypad 32 and the thumbwheel 28 a.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the stored program control includes operatingsystem software 54 and the other software applications or functions 58used by the microprocessor 38. The program (i.e. firmware) is stored ina persistent (i.e. non-volatile) device such as flash memory 24 orsimilar storage device. Those skilled in the art will appreciate thatthe operating system 54, the software applications 58, or parts thereof,may be temporarily loaded into a volatile store such as RAM 26. It iscontemplated that received communication signals may also be stored toRAM 26.

Reference is next made to FIG. 3, which depicts the software application58 resident (i.e. loaded or stored) on the device 10 and implemented asfunctional components or modules 300. The functional components ormodules 300 interact and control the device subsystems described above,and include an address book module 304, a communication module 306, andan email and/or instant text messaging module 308. Although thecommunication module 306 is described as phone communication module, itwill be appreciated that in other embodiments the communication modulemay comprise a data communication device or voice/data communicationdevice. The features/operations associated with the functional modules300 may be implemented through firmware or hardware components, or acombination of hardware and firmware executed by the microprocessor 38.

The address book module 304 provides the functionality to store andaccess contact information, such as telephone numbers and email and/orinstant text messaging addresses, as well as information such as acontact's name, company name, address, notes about the contact andcontact category (e.g. work, personal, etc). The phone module 306 allowsthe device 10 to operate as a voice phone (or a video phone in anotherimplementation) over the wireless network 50 and/or other networks. Themessaging module 308 provides the communication device 10 with thecapability to send and receive electronic messages such as email and/ortext messages over the wireless network 50 and/or other networks.

As shown in FIG. 2, the functional modules 300 may each have anassociated selectable icon that is displayed on the screen 44 as part ofa graphical user interface. As shown, the address book module 304includes an icon 304 a. The phone module 306 includes an icon orindicator 306 a and the electronic messaging module 308 includes an icon308 a or graphical indicator.

In the presently described embodiment, the phone module 306 isconfigured with at least a first line and a second line for transmittingand receiving phone calls. Accordingly, the communication device 10 willhave at least a first and a second phone number corresponding to thefirst line and to the second line respectively. For example, a user mayuse the first line and corresponding first phone number for work use andthe second line and corresponding second phone number for personal use.

As shown in FIG. 3, the communication device 10 comprises a lineselection module 310 for selecting which line should be used by thephone module 306. The line selection module 310 selects the line to beused by the phone module 306 based upon line selection informationstored on the device 10 for example, a record of which line is a defaultline. When the user initiates a phone call, the microprocessor 38 underprogram control determines the selected line for the line selectionmodule 310 and passes it on to the phone module 306. It should be notedthat the line selection module 310 may be implemented as a component orfunction of the phone module 306. The line selection module 310 may alsobe implemented as part of any other module, for example, the addressbook module 304.

According to one implementation, when a user makes a phone call, theline selection module 310 selects a default line. This default line maybe selected by the user, for example by way of a line selection userinterface screen as will be described in more detail below. The defaultline may be the first line, the second line or any other line.

The line that is used for a call to a particular target recipient may berecorded by the microprocessor 38 in association with that targetrecipient so that the next time a call is made to that target recipient,the line selection module 310 selects the recorded line. It should benoted that the term “target recipient” is referred to herein as thephone number, person, company or the like to whom/which an outgoing callis made. The term “target recipient” may also be taken to mean one ormore persons, companies or the like.

According to another embodiment, target recipients stored as entries inthe address book of the address book module 304 are associated with aparticular line. When the user places a call to a particular targetrecipient, the line selection module 310 selects the line associatedwith that particular target recipient.

Reference is made to FIG. 4A which shows, in diagrammatic form, agraphical user interface screen (i.e. display screen) for an addressbook list 400. The address book list screen 400 may be generated inresponse to the user selecting the address book icon 304 a (FIG. 2) forexample using the thumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2). The address book list screen400 includes a list of target recipients denoted by reference 402. Theaddress book entry screen 400 may also be generated in response to theuser selecting the phone module icon 306 a (FIG. 2) and subsequentselection of a menu item.

Selection of a particular target recipient from the list of targetrecipients 402, via the keyboard 32 and/or an auxiliary input device 28such as thumbwheel 28 a, generates an address book entry graphical userinterface or display screen 404, as shown in FIG. 4B. As shown theaddress book entry display screen 404 includes one or more of thefollowing: a name 406 for the target recipient (e.g. John Smith), acompany name 408 with which the target recipient is associated (e.g.John Smith Company), a phone number 410 for the target recipient phonenumber (e.g. (123) 456-7890), an email address 412 associated with thetarget recipient (e.g. john.smith@smithco.com) and notes 414 associatedwith the target recipient.

According to another embodiment, the address book entry screen 404includes a user selectable line selection field 416, as shown in FIG.4C. For example, the user selects “work line” from a drop-down list or amenu. The line selection module 310 selects the line displayed in theline selection field 416 when the user places a call to the targetrecipient with which the address book entry is associated.

As shown in FIG. 4D, the address book entry screen 404 includes acategory field 418. For example, if the user selects the category“work”, the line selection module 310 (automatically) selects the lineassociated with work use, for example, the first line. In anotherexample, if the user enters the category “friend”, the line selectionmodule 310 selects the line associated with personal use, for example,the second line.

According to another embodiment, the line selection module 310 selects afirst line during a first time period and a second line during a secondtime period. For example, a user may wish to automatically use a firstline during work hours and a second line after work hours and onweekends.

According to another embodiment, when a user misses an incoming call tothe device 10 and the caller does not leave a voice mail, a missed callindicator or icon 500 is displayed on screen 44 (FIG. 2), as shown inFIG. 5A. The missed call indicator 500 may be displayed on the screen 44(FIG. 2) following a user prompt using an auxiliary I/O device 28 (FIG.1), for example, the thumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2), or the keyboard 32 (FIG.2). It should be noted that there may be more than one missed callindicator, for example a primary indicator such as a missed call icon oran item in a list of recent activity (i.e. a call log) and a secondaryindicator similar to the missed call indicator 500 which is displayed onthe screen 44 (FIG. 2) following a user prompt, as discussed above.

The missed call indicator 500 may include the phone number of the missedcall 502 (e.g. (123) 987-6543). The missed call indicator 500 may alsodisplay the line 504 on which the call was made (e.g. “work line”). Ifthe phone number of the missed call 502 corresponds to the phone numberof a target recipient stored in the address book module 304 (FIG. 3),the missed call indicator 500 may display the name 506 (e.g. SallyJones) or any other information associated with target recipient towhich the phone number corresponds. The missed call indicator 500 mayalso display the time and date of the missed call 508.

The user can prompt the device 10 to display to an additional menu 510,as shown in FIG. 5B via the keyboard and/or an auxiliary input devicesuch as thumbwheel 28 a. The additional menu 510 comprises a pluralityof selectable items, including an item 512 for calling the targetrecipient, e.g. “Call Sally Jones”. If the user selects the item 512,the phone module places a call to the target recipient. The lineselection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects the line associated with thetarget recipient in the address book module 304 (FIG. 3), as describedabove. Alternatively, the line selection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects thesame line that was used the last time a call was placed to that targetrecipient, as stored on the device 10 by the microprocessor 38 (FIG. 1).Alternatively, the line selection module 310 selects the line on whichthe missed call was received.

According to another embodiment, the phone module 306 (FIG. 3) comprisesa call log displayed on screen 44 (FIG. 2) as a call log user interface600 having a list 602 of recently called target recipients and/orreceived calls, missed calls and voice mails as shown in FIG. 6A. Itwill be appreciated that the (primary) missed call indicator mentionedpreviously may be displayed as an item of the list 602.

The user places a call to a particular target recipient of the list 602by selecting the target recipient using the auxiliary I/O device 28(FIG. 1), for example, the thumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2), or the keyboard 32(FIG. 2) in conjunction with the display 22. Selection of the targetrecipient prompts the display of a menu 604, as shown in FIG. 6B, viathe keyboard 32 and/or an auxiliary input device 28 such as thumbwheel28 a. The menu 604 comprises a plurality of selectable items, includingan item 606 for placing a call to the particular target recipient, e.g.“Call (131) 232-2323”. The line selection module 310 (FIG. 3) selectsthe same line that was used the last time a call was placed to thattarget recipient, as stored on the device 10 by the microprocessor 38.Alternatively, the line selection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects the lineassociated with the target recipient in the address book module 304(FIG. 3), as described above.

In another embodiment, the phone module 306 (FIG. 3) comprises a voicemail system. When a new voice mail message is stored by the phone module306, the device 10 displays a voice mail waiting indicator 700 on screen44, as shown in FIG. 7A. The voice mail indicator 700 may be displayedon the screen 44 (FIG. 2) following a user prompt using an auxiliary I/Odevice 28 (FIG. 1), for example, the thumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2), or thekeyboard 32 (FIG. 2). It will be appreciated that there may be more thanone voice mail indicator, for example, a primary indicator such as avoice mail icon or an item in a list of recent activity (e.g. a calllog) and a secondary indicator similar to the voice mail waitingindicator 700 which is displayed on the display 22 (FIG. 2) following auser prompt, as discussed above.

The voice mail waiting indicator 700 may display the line 702 on whichthe call was made (e.g. “personal line”) and a phone number 704 of thetarget recipient that left the voice mail (e.g. “(123) 987-6543”). Ifthe phone number 704 corresponds to the phone number of a targetrecipient stored in the address book module 304 (FIG. 3), the voice mailindicator 700 may also display a name 706 or any other information ofthe target recipient that left the voice mail (e.g. “Home”). The voicemail indicator 700 may also display a time and date 708 for the voicemail message.

The user may prompt the display of an additional menu 710, as shown inFIG. 7B via the keyboard and/or an auxiliary input device such asthumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2). The menu 710 comprises a plurality ofselectable items, including an item 712 for calling the number of thetarget recipient that left the voice mail, e.g. “Call Home”. The lineselection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects the line 702 (FIG. 7A) indicatedin the voice mail waiting indicator 700. Alternatively, the lineselection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects the same line that was used thelast time a call was placed to that target recipient, as stored on thedevice 10 by the microprocessor 38. Alternatively, the line selectionmodule 310 (FIG. 3) selects the line associated with the targetrecipient in the address book module 304 (FIG. 3), as described above.

According to another embodiment, the messaging module 308 (FIG. 3)includes email functionality. When an email message is opened, thescreen 44 (FIG. 2) displays an email message graphical user interfacescreen 800, as shown in FIG. 8A. The email message screen 800 isgenerated in response to the user selecting an email message or inresponse to other activity at device 10. It will be appreciated that theemail message screen 800 may be replaced by a screen display for an SMSmessage or any other type of electronic message, for example, asdescribed above.

As shown in FIG. 8A, the email message screen 800 includes a sender name802, a list of recipients 804, a subject of the message 806, a dateand/or time the message was sent 808 and a message body 810. The messagebody 810 may include an email hyperlink 812. The user may prompt thedevice 10 display to a menu 814, as shown in FIG. 8B, via the keyboardand/or an auxiliary input device such as thumbwheel 28 a (FIG. 2) byselecting the email hyperlink 812. The menu 814 comprises a plurality ofselectable items, including an item 816 for calling the target recipientassociated with the email hyperlink 812. Selection of the item 816 willprompt the phone module 306 to place a call to the target recipientassociated with the email hyperlink 814. The line selection module 310(FIG. 3) selects the line associated with the target recipient in theaddress book module 304. Alternatively, the line selection module 310(FIG. 3) selects the same line that was used the last time a call wasplaced to that target recipient, as stored on the device 10 by themicroprocessor 38.

According to one embodiment, selection of the item 816 prompts the phonemodule 306 (FIG. 3) to place a call to the target recipient associatedwith the email author or sender 802. The line selection module 310 (FIG.3) selects the line associated with the email author or sender 802 inthe address book module 304 (FIG. 3). Alternatively, the line selectionmodule 310 selects to use the same line that was used the last time acall was placed to that target recipient, as stored on the device 10 bythe microprocessor 38.

According to another embodiment, the user prompts the device 10 todisplay a line selection setup user interface screen 900 as shown inFIG. 9A. The line selection setup screen 900 may be displayed inresponse to a line selection icon (not shown). The line selection setupuser interface screen 900 may also be prompted via a user selectableitem in a phone module user interface screen (not shown). Through theline selection setup screen 900, the user activates or deactivatesvarious line selection configurations and enters various information.

The user may enter a company name (e.g. John Smith Company) in a field902 in the line selection setup screen 900. The company name 902 may bestored in association with a user-selectable line 904 (e.g. a work line)so that whenever a phone call is made to the target recipient associatedwith that company, the line selection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects thatselected line 904 This company name 902 may be the user's own companyname.

The line selection setup screen 900 may comprise a number ofuser-selectable items, such as an item 906 for selecting an option toalways use a particular line, such as a default line 908. The lineselection setup screen 900 may also include an optional function 910 forselecting which line to use as the default line.

The line selection setup screen 900 may also comprise an optionalfunction for selecting a first time period 912 during which to select afirst line 914 and a second time period 916 during which to select asecond line 918 as described above.

The line selection setup screen 900 may include setup options orfunctions 920 for assigning alternate lines to certain categories orline selection fields, as described above with reference to FIG. 4D forexample.

According to another embodiment, the user prompts the device to displaya user interface screen 930, as shown in FIG. 9B, that is similar to thegraphical user interface screen for the address book list 400. This userinterface screen 930 comprises a list 932 of target recipients. Each ofthe target recipients 932 includes a line selection indicator 934 thatindicates which outgoing line will be selected by the line selectionmodule 310 (FIG. 3) as described above with respect to otherembodiments. The user may elect to change the selected line indicated bythe line selection indicator 934 using suitable means for lineselection, such as the line selection field 416 described previously.

It should be noted that while in the above description, a number ofexample embodiments have been described independently, these embodimentsmay also be combined. For example, if a call is placed to a targetrecipient associated with a particular address book entry, the lineselection module 310 (FIG. 3) selects the line associated with thatparticular address book entry. If the target recipient is not associatedwith an address book entry, the line selection module 310 selects theline associated with the period of the day during which the call isplaced.

It should also be understood that while in the above description, theentering of information, selection of items, and the like is performedusing the device 10, it is equally possibly these tasks be performedusing a computer, for example a desktop computer, in communication withthe device 10.

It is to be appreciated that the foregoing embodiments are exemplary anddo not limit the implementation of the invention to any particularcomputer programming language, operating system, system architecture ordevice architecture. Moreover, although some embodiments may includemobile devices, not all embodiments are limited to mobile devices;rather, various embodiments may be implemented within a variety ofcommunications devices or terminals, including handheld devices, mobiletelephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), personal computers,audio-visual terminals, televisions, and other devices.

Furthermore, the present invention may be embodied in other specificforms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristicsthereof. Certain adaptations and modifications of the invention will beobvious to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the presently discussedembodiments are considered to be illustrative and not restrictive, thescope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather theforegoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning andrange of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embracedtherein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for selecting a line, from at least twolines available to a device, for making a call over a network, themethod comprising: sensing receipt of an incoming call to the device ona particular one of the at least two lines from a target party;associating the particular one of the at least two lines with the targetparty in response to the sensing the receipt of the incoming call;subsequent to the associating the particular one of the at least twolines with the target party, detecting initiation of an outgoing callfrom the device to the target party; and in response to the detectingthe initiation of the outgoing call, operating the device to make theoutgoing call to the target party using contact information for thetarget party on the particular one of the at least two lines associatedwith the target party.
 2. The method of claim 1 further comprisingstoring, in a call log, a record of a previous outgoing call to thetarget party.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the detecting theinitiation of the outgoing call comprises: detecting selection of areference to the record of the previous outgoing call in the call log;and detecting selection of a menu item associated with initiating theoutgoing call to the target party referenced by the record of theprevious outgoing call.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the sensingreceipt of the incoming call comprises sensing receipt of a missedincoming call on the particular one of the at least two lines from thetarget party.
 5. The method of claim 4 further comprising storing, in acall log, a record of the missed incoming call from the target party. 6.The method of claim 5 wherein the detecting the initiation of theoutgoing call comprises: detecting selection of a reference to therecord of the missed incoming call from the call log; and detectingselection of a menu item associated with initiating the outgoing call tothe target party referenced by the record of the missed incoming call.7. The method of claim 4 further comprising storage of a voice mailmessage following the missed incoming call received on the particularone of the at least two lines from the target party.
 8. The method ofclaim 7 wherein the detecting the initiation of the outgoing callcomprises: controlling display of a voice mail waiting indicator;responsive to receipt of input, controlling display of a menu associatedwith the voice mail waiting indicator; and detecting selection of a menuitem in the menu, the menu item associated with initiating the outgoingcall to the target party referenced by the voice mail waiting indicator.9. The method of claim 1 wherein the outgoing call is a voice call. 10.The method of claim 1 wherein the outgoing call is a video call.
 11. Adevice for communicating over a network, the device comprising: acommunication module adapted to: communicate with a target party overthe network on one of at least two lines; sense receipt of an incomingcall to the device involving a particular one of the at least two linesand the target party; associate the particular one of the at least twolines with the target party in response to sensing the receipt of theincoming call; a storage module adapted to store line selectioninformation, where the line selection information includes anassociation between the particular one of the at least two lines and thetarget party; an input module, the input module being responsive toinitiation of an outgoing call from the device to the target partysubsequent to storage of the association between the particular one ofthe at least two lines and the target party; and a line selection moduleadapted to select, responsive to the initiation and based on the lineselection information, the particular one of the at least two lines formaking the outgoing call to the target party using contact informationfor the target party.
 12. The device of claim 11 wherein the incomingcall comprises a missed incoming call on the particular one of the atleast two lines from the target party.
 13. The device of claim 11wherein the communication module is further adapted to sense receipt ofa voice mail message for the particular one of the at least two linesfrom the target party.
 14. The device of claim 11 wherein thecommunicating with the target party is a video call.
 15. The device ofclaim 11 wherein the communicating with the target party is a voicecall.
 16. A non-transitory computer readable medium containingcomputer-executable instructions that, when performed by a processor fora mobile communication device having at least two lines, cause theprocessor to: sense receipt of an incoming call to the mobilecommunication device involving a particular one of the at least twolines and a target party; associate the particular one of the at leasttwo lines with the target party in response to sensing the receipt ofthe incoming call; store line selection information, where the lineselection information includes an association between the particular oneof the at least two lines and the target party; subsequent to storage ofthe association between the particular one of the at least two lines andthe target party, detect initiation of an outgoing call specifying thetarget party; select, responsive to the detecting the initiation of theoutgoing call, the particular one of the at least two lines based on theline selection information; and operate the mobile communication deviceto make the outgoing call to the target party using contact informationfor the target party on the particular one of the at least two lines.17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein theincoming call comprises a missed incoming call on the particular one ofthe at least two lines from the target party.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the instructions furthercause the processor to sense receipt of a voice mail message for theparticular one of the at least two lines from the target party.
 19. Thedevice of claim 12 wherein the communication module is further adaptedto store, in a call log, a record of the missed incoming call from thetarget party.
 20. The device of claim 19 wherein the communicationmodule is further adapted to communicating with the target party by:detecting selection of a reference to the record of the missed incomingcall from the call log; and detecting selection of a menu itemassociated with communicating with the target party referenced by therecord of the missed incoming call.
 21. The device of claim 13 whereinthe line selection module is further adapted to detect initiation ofcommunicating with the target party by: controlling display of a voicemail waiting indicator; responsive to receipt of input, controllingdisplay of a menu associated with the voice mail waiting indicator; anddetecting selection of a menu item in the menu, the menu item associatedwith initiating communicating with the target party referenced by thevoice mail waiting indicator.
 22. The non-transitory computer readablemedium of claim 17 wherein the instructions further cause the processorto store, in a call log, a record of the missed incoming call from thetarget party.
 23. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim22 wherein the instructions further cause the processor to detect theinitiation of the outgoing call by: detecting selection of a referenceto the record of the missed incoming call from the call log; anddetecting selection of a menu item associated with initiating theoutgoing call to the target party referenced by the record of the missedincoming call.
 24. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim18 wherein the instructions further cause the processor to detect theinitiation of the outgoing call by: controlling display of a voice mailwaiting indicator; responsive to receipt of input, controlling displayof a menu associated with the voice mail waiting indicator; anddetecting selection of a menu item in the menu, the menu item associatedwith initiating the outgoing call to the target party referenced by thevoice mail waiting indicator.
 25. The non-transitory computer readablemedium of claim 16 wherein the outgoing call is a voice call.
 26. Thenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the outgoingcall is a video call.